After three straight losses to regional foes, the University of Redlands softball team bounced back with a doubleheader sweep against the visiting Sagehens of Pomona-Pitzer Colleges in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) action on Saturday. The Bulldogs relied on solid pitching and late-game rallies to take down the Sagehens by scores of 6-1 and 8-0, respectively.

In the opener, the Bulldogs gave up a run in the top of the fourth inning on an errant throw to home with the bases loaded. Redlands quickly made up for it with two quick outs to end the inning, as the defense tagged out a runner in a pickle play and then junior catcher Nicky Neumann (Fremont, CA) picked off another at third.

The Maroon and Gray then equalized the score with a run of its own in the bottom of the inning. Freshman third baseman Lindsay Henry (Lake Elsinore, CA) led off with a single down the right field line and then scored on a single by junior designated player Amanda Doeppel (Monrovia, CA).

Tied at one apiece, Redlands broke it open in the sixth inning with a five-run explosion. Doeppel led off with a double to right center. With freshman Molly Duran (Corona, CA) pinch running, freshman right fielder Jen Boschken (Davis, CA) connected on a single down the right field line to score Duran. The team then strung together four hits and took advantage of aggressive base-running with steals, wild pitches, and passed balls, to score four more runs. Freshman short stop Kai Masutani (Honolulu, HI), junior center fielder Kayla Peterson (San Jose, CA), sophomore first baseman Lizett Casillas (Pomona, CA), and senior second baseman Dory Baga (Aiea, HI) each recorded RBI-singles for the Bulldogs.

Junior pitcher Olivia Ellis (Colfax, CA) scattered three hits and struck out seven batters in seven innings of work, earning her 11th win of the season.

In the nightcap, Redlands tallied 10 hits and scored eight runs in six innings while holding the Sagehens to just three hits and no runs.

The Bulldogs initiated the scoring in the bottom of the first inning as Baga provided a sacrifice fly to score Neumann, who was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning.

During the third inning, the Maroon and Gray added two runs and then followed that up with three more in the fifth. Redlands solidified its lead with two runs in the sixth, gaining the win by the eight-run-rule.

Doeppel earned the win for the Bulldogs, striking out three batters and scattering three hits. She also went 3-for-3 from the plate with one RBI and one run scored.

With a 10-2 SCIAC record, Redlands (13-8, 10-2) sits atop the conference standings. The Bulldogs welcome non-conference opponent Williams College (MA) to the “Field of Dreams” on Thursday for a 2 p.m. doubleheader.